A Truth Universally Ignored
by undercoverdreamer
Summary: Eliza Bennett, NYU student and aspiring writer, is single and could not be happier. Then why, when Will Darcy comes to town, does he so easily drive her completely crazy? It's because she hates him- right?
1. Chapter 1

"It is a truth universally known that if a man is single, he's looking for a wife. Although, I must say some women are a bit better at drawing them in than others. Honestly, darling, if you put on a bit of makeup and wore dresses more often, I'm sure you would have dozens of men beating down your door. Well, maybe not like they always have for Jane, but you definitely have potential. If only you would apply yourself. Eliza, are you even listening to me?"

I glanced up from the infamous red velvet cupcake I had been waiting for weeks to bite into. You could say that it was the only reason I was even at this stupid shin-dig.

"Hm?" I gave my mother an innocent look, to which she glared in return. "Truth universally known, tons of single men beating down my door, apply myself- got it."

I gave her a lopsided grin as I took a heavenly bite into the perfection that is a Charlotte Lucas pastry. In my moment of euphoria, I let my guard down and Mom managed to snatch the cake out of my hand. I gasped dramatically, putting a hand on my chest.

"You can try to get me to do or be whatever you want, Mother. But let me tell you, when you mess with this girl's dessert, you are treading in dangerous waters." Mom sighed, rolled her eyes and handed the cake back to me, which I tore from her ungrateful hands. She quickly readjusted the large hat perched on her head, making her look like a British socialite.

"Listen, Eliza. You know I only want the best for you, right?" Her eyes looked a bit sad, so I grabbed her hand and gave it a quick squeeze.

"Of course."

"Great, because there's somebody I want you to meet." Mom's expressions changed about as quickly as her motives. I didn't even try to hide my groan-slash-eye roll.

"Why don't you just introduce them to Jane?" I turned around and called over my shoulder. "She is the prettiest girl in town!"

She decided to not take my cue and instead followed me to the bar.

"Oh, quit being so melodramatic. You are just as beautiful as Jane. Just differently. Besides, you know Jane already has a rich successful boyfriend." She turned to the tall bartender. "Give me a martini, dry. Three olives."

I knew that Jane had a rich successful boyfriend- up until three weeks ago when she broke it off with him. But I wasn't about to go telling Mom that. I could never to that to Jane.

"Whiskey." I said simply to the man behind the counter.

"And there's another thing. You drink like a man. A heavy man. On St. Patricks Day, in the city. Men like women who drink like women."

I grabbed my drink right from the hand of the bartender, and took a long sip. Over the edge of the glass I could see a familiar face pushing through the crowd towards us.

"Jane!" I said with a sigh of relief, almost spitting out my drink.

Mom twirled around and let out a screech at the sight of my big sister.

"Janey-Baby! Why you look absolutely beautiful, like always!" She threw her arms around Jane.

You would have to be either stupid or blind to say that Jane was anything less than stunning. Her pale golden hair she had gotten from who knows where fell down her back in perfect wavy curls. Jane had eyes the color of the sky just after a storm, and the permanent gentle smile that played across her lips at all times did a pretty damn good job of giving away her personality. And we all loved her for it.

"Hey Mom," she said, her voice quite and sweet.

"Now darling, why are you so late? You know, men like women who are prompt! Oh, I bet you were with Adam, weren't you? He is such a good man, Janey. Not to mention he has quite a few pennies to rub together. You really struck gold with this one." Mom laughed loudly at her own joke.

Jane glanced at me with a hugely guilty expression. I gave her a slight shake of the head, which apparently she chose to ignore.

"Actually, Mom, Adam and I broke up."

For once, Mom actually had nothing to say. Well technically, her mouth was moving, but no sound came out. Eventually, she found her voice.

"How could you let such an opportunity slip through your fingers?" Mom held her fingers less than an inch apart, "You were _this_ _close _to getting a ring, Jane. This. Close."

I jumped into my sister's defense.

"Adam is stupid and rude and not the right guy for Jane. You should just be glad she caught on before he got the chance to ask her to marry him."

"Eliza!" Jane tried to look exasperated, but I could tell that she agreed.

"A proposal from him is better than no proposal at all." Mom huffed, scanning the room as if to say she couldn't bear to look at me.

"I can't believe you! You would rather have your oldest daughter be stuck in a toxic relationship forever than be single for five minutes." I hit back the rest of my drink, and slammed it onto the bar.

"Honestly, Elizabeth, quit being so melodramatic! Every relationship has its problems, but you learn to live with it. Take your father for example; he pays no care for my poor nerves. And yet, I'm still with him, and plan to be for the rest of my life."

"Well excuse me if I don't want Jane to settle for anything less than the best."

Jane rolled her shoulders back and stepped in between the two of us.

"Alright, believe it or not, this isn't about either of you two. I made the choice, and I'm not going back on it," My sister's moment of confidence faded, "Okay?"

"Of course, Jane," I said to my sister, while looking at my mother.

Jane nodded, and then glanced pointedly at Mom.

"I will think about letting this massive slip of judgment go- under one condition. There is someone that I want you to meet."

"Mom!" I said just as Jane sighed "Okay."

"Okay?" I said exasperatedly.

As Mom let out a squeal of joy, Jane leaned in to whisper in my ear.

"All I have to do is say a quick 'Hi' to this guy, and then we'll be home free."

"I don't like it, Jane. You're letting her win." Jane looked almost sad when she turned to look at me.

"Nobody's winning, Eliza."

"But-"

"Come along girls," Mom grabbed Jane's wrist, "Let's go meet Charlie Bingley."


	2. Chapter 2

As Mom elbowed her way through the throng of party-goers, I crossed my arms over my chest. Jane had promised that she would meet this guy, but I had said no such thing. Leaning my back into the bar, I watched my family begin to disappear into the crowd.

I could see Jane turn around to face me, her look saying, "_Don't make me do this alone_."

I just raised my eyebrows, as if to say, "_You got yourself into this mess_."

As her lips pressed together and eyebrows furrowed, I could practically hear my sisters voice beg, "_Please_."

I shook my head, but she just kept staring, and staring, and staring.

Letting out a frustrated sigh, I held up a finger and mouthed "_One second_". Jane nodded with a triumphant smile spreading across her face. She turned and followed the path Mom had taken.

Spinning around to face the bartender, I pushed my empty glass forward with one finger.

"Be generous." I requested. There was no way I could do this without a bit of help.

I gripped my glass and prepared myself to meet another rich loser and/or douche bag that my mother seems to think would be the perfect match for one of us.

I took a drink as I turned to follow Jane into the crowd. I guess when I caught sight of her blond head and started toward her and my imminent doom, I didn't see the person stalking across my path towards the bar.

Although, approximately three seconds later I did see my drink dripping down the front of his cashmere sweater, and onto his truly nice looking Berluti shoes.

"Oh, god!" I sputtered, staring at the stain spreading across his chest. "I'm so sorry-"

"It's fine." He had a dark grumbling voice was more quiet than it was soft.

I franticly started to dab the liquor with the sleeve of my sweater.

"I really am-"

"It's fine." He said it again, but this time I actually recognized the extreme irritation in his voice that had always been there, but was just more prominent now.

I looked up in surprise to see a very annoyed, annoyingly handsome boy. I suppose it would be wrong to call him a boy, all chiseled features and sharp eyes. As I studied him, my fingers itched for a pen, the ache to write so strong that I had to clench my hands into a fist.

"What?" He demanded.

I blinked twice.

"Huh?"

"You were," he grimaced, "staring at me."

I scoffed, "No, I wasn't." I looked away.

It wasn't my finest moment.

"Yes, you were."

"Listen," I crossed my arms, "I said I was sorry-"

"Yeah, you did." As he rolled his eyes, I was suddenly struck, seeing that his were almost the exact same shade of dark blue as mine. I shook the thought away quickly, irritated by how easily distracted I was being.

"Then what do you want from me?" I insisted. I could feel my temper begin to flare, and it bugged me that a complete stranger could get such a reaction out of me.

"I just want you to leave me alone!" His voice rose, only a bit, but he glanced around like he was worried about drawing too much attention.

"Fine." It was my turn to roll my eyes as I shoved past him to find my sister.

I was not about to let this arrogant prick ruin my night. It was bad enough that I had let him get into my head. I promised myself that I would never make that mistake again, no matter which arrogant prick it was. Even if he did have the kind of ebony hair that probably looked like fading coals during the sunset or strong hands that artists dream about at night.

_No, Eliza, not that douche bag, _I told myself.

Nose in the air, I marched across the towering warehouse. I was surprised by how many people turned up for the party this year. Usually, this close to Christmas most went to the city to go visit family, friends, or all of the above. Maybe they heard about the amazing desserts, and decided to stay a couple of extra days just to get a taste.

"Liza!"

Recognizing the voice, I turned and found my best friend waving goodbye to a group of people, and walking in my direction.

"Lottie," I said with a sigh, "Love the dress!"

And how could I not? The sky blue tulle of the skirt contrasted perfectly with her dark skin. She had somehow tied her insanely dark and curly hair up into an efficient bun. Some might mistake her look for "plain", but they just weren't looking close enough.

"Thanks, darling," Her eyes shone as she winked, "You, too."

Glancing down at the plain black sweater dress that my mother had forced me into for this occasion only, I gave her an incredulous look.

"The food is amazing," I told her with a playful poke to the stomach. "I think everyone likes it."

"I hope so," Lottie said, hands wringing. "All I want is some good publicity."

"And maybe soon you can open up your own bakery!" I suggested the idea with very low expectations, and I wasn't surprised.

"You know I'm waiting until I have more security both financially and in my abilities. It'll probably happen, just, not right now."

"I know, it's just hard when I have more confidence in you than you do. The cupcakes really are fantastic."

"So where were you headed off to in such a hurry?" Lottie asked, reminding me of the promise I had made to Jane.

"Mom is making Jane meet this guy and I promised I would go suffer through it with her. I better go find them."

"Well I'll come along then, too," She shifted her voice to a perfect impression of my mother. "You know, Elizabeth, this could end up being the man that you _marry_!"

Giggling, I continued on my seemingly endless search for my family. It didn't take too long to find Mom and Jane, along with my other sister, Mary. She was probably the only Bennett sister who wanted to be at this party less than I did. She was a classic "Bennett Brunette", but lacked the wild curls that the rest of us possessed (and despised).

"Well it is about time." Mom stated as we approached looking, as she always did, flustered. "Jane said that you were coming, so we waited for you. This is a good opportunity for any of you girls." She scowled slightly in Lottie's direction.

"Where are Lydia and Kitty, then?"

"Oh well apparently, unlike my other daughters, they care about their futures," Mom said bitterly, then pointed into the crowd. "They are out there meeting new people and having a good time, with no insistence on my part, I might add. I thought that I would introduce you girls who seemed to need a bit more of my help."

"I do not need-" I started, but was cut off quickly.

"Oh, there he is!" Mom squealed, pointing maybe thirty feet away, to a man and woman with matching scarlet hair and blue eyes. They stood apart from the rest of the crowd, and though the guy wore a friendly smile, the woman's expression was snide. It made me feel a bit hesitant, but my mother didn't wait a second to close the distance between us. As Jane, then Mary, then Lottie followed behind, I reproachfully walked along a moment later.

"Charles Bingley!" Mom exclaimed as we approached, thrusting out her hand. "I'm Frances Bennett. It is so lovely to meet you! Why, when I heard through the grapevine that you would be coming to visit, well I couldn't wait to introduce myself! We don't get visitors like you too often out here!"

Mom wasn't kidding. Growing up, we had always lived in this tiny Connecticut town, right on the water. It wasn't too touristy, because it was pretty cold for a coastal town, except for like two months of the year. The only people who came out here for vacation were usually rich, and stayed in these huge beachside houses. But never this time of year.

"Please, call me Charlie. We're thrilled to meet you," He said as the girl beside him shot a nasty look. "Oh, I almost forgot. This is my sister, Caroline."

My mother grinned from ear to ear.

"Well then, considering you two are new to town, I thought you might want someone to show you around. Maybe just have a few familiar faces. Oh dear, where are my manners? I've had these girls standing in front of you for five minutes and haven't introduced you all."

I mentally cringed at Mom's tactics. She really didn't have any shame, did she?

"Over there is Mary, she's my middle child, god bless her," Mom moved right on down the line. "That is Charlotte Lucas, not mine, but a dear friend of the family for many years. That one over there is Elizabeth."

"Eliza!" I managed to say before she moved right along.

"And finally, this is my Jane."

"I'm glad to meet you _all_." Charlie said, as an unsurprised smile overtook Mom's face. She could see, well, everyone could see Charlie's expression right now, and you would be a fool to think that the "all" wasn't meant for Jane.

What surprised me was the shy blush now covering Jane's cheeks.

Did she like this guy?

After a moment of awkward silence from the whole group, I decided to ask a question that had been on my mind.

"So," I started with a bit of hesitation, "Why are you guys here for Christmas and not with family?"

"Eliza!" Mom huffed, hands on her hips. "That is not an appropriate question to ask a new acquaintance!"

"It's fine." Charlie reassured her, and then turned to me. "Our parent's usually work a lot over holidays, so years back they made a deal with us. They said that as a Christmas gift we could choose a place we wanted to go and stay there over our break."

"What brought you here, then?" I wondered out loud.

"I go to med school at UCLA, but this year I'm doing my spring semester at NYU." Charlie explained, "I thought it would be an interesting change of pace to spend a little bit of time in a small town like this, before heading back to school. I just picked one fairly close to New York City."

"What a coincidence!" Mom said, like it was not a coincidence at all. "Jane goes to New York University!"

"So do I, Mom." I informed her, my patience wearing quite thin.

"Details," She stated dismissively. "The point is you will all be there together! Isn't that wonderful?"

"Yeah," Each of us said (with mixed levels of enthusiasm).

"Eliza." My mother said to me.

"Frances." I said to my mother.

The pointed look had been expected.

"Would you please go find your sisters? I want to introduce them to the Bingley's!" Mom put on her best fake smile. I was impressed.

"There are more of them?" I heard Caroline say under her breath.

"Only two." I answered, even though I know she wasn't really asking.

I turned on my heel, glad to find any reason to escape the conversation, even if only for a few minutes. This Charlie guy seemed nice enough, but they were all really the same. Usually, these men came and stayed for a few weeks, then were gone without getting to know anyone. But I couldn't blame them. They were here to have a relaxing vacation, not meet their new wife.

I found my sisters after a few minutes of hunting in the place I truly should have looked first: in the midst of a large pack of men. All giggles and flirtatious glances, Lydia and Kitty were the youngest and the wildest of the Bennett sisters. Honestly, they had probably ended up the most like our mother had hoped for her daughters.

I had to push my way through hoards of biceps and beer glasses to finally reach the girls I was looking for. I grabbed at Lydia's elbow, tugging it in my direction. When she turned her eyes lit up.

"Lizzie!" My barely 18-years-old sister giggled horrendously in my ear.

"Mom wants you and Kitty to come meet Jane's new husband," I cut right to the chase.

"Oh, and I missed the wedding?" Lydia's sarcasm was not new.

"Just get your butt over there to meet the guy for five seconds, and then you can come back to your party."

"Well what if my butt doesn't want to go over there?" She asked stubbornly.

"Lydia-" I started, but was interrupted by my final and youngest sister, Kitty.

"Hey Liz! What are you doing here?"

It seemed that everyone and their mother had a different nickname for me.

"Mom wants us to go meet Jane's new _lover_." Lydia answered, winking at me.

"What?" Kitty asked.

"Mom wants you two to go meet Charlie Bingley and his sister, Caroline," I told her, sending a warning glance at Lydia.

"And I said that we were very busy." Lydia grinned mischievously at a tall blond guy at a table a few feet away.

"Common, you know Mom will be pissed if I come back without you two."

"Then come up with an excuse," Lydia suggested. "Tell her we have food poisoning."

"How about: no."

"God Eliza, would you please lighten up a bit? I bet more guys would like you if you weren't so uptight."

"Gee, thanks for the advice," My voice dripped with sarcasm.

"I'm just trying to help," Lydia said, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Why don't you help yourself?"

"What's _that _supposed to mean?"

"I think you know-"

"Why don't we just calm down?" Kitty interrupted softly, looking around at the people who had stopped to stare.

"Just forget it." I said, turning and propelling my way back through the group of frat boys.

Fuming, I marched across the room. I forced myself to take deep breaths, knowing that it was just another stupid fight over nothing. I just didn't understand her, and I wondered if I ever would.

Sighing, I approached the group, and realized that there was another person among them. His back facing me, but his strong shoulders and dark wavy hair looked a bit familiar. I could see Caroline leaning toward him, looking up from under her eyelashes.

"What took you so long?" I heard her voice, and I knew she was trying to sound more curious than upset.

"Some stupid girl dumped her drink all over me," The familiar voice rumbled, almost freezing me in my place. "Then she stared at me for five minutes and wouldn't let me leave."

"Eliza!" Charlie seemed to have finally noticed my arrival. "I want you to meet the other person staying with Caroline and I. Eliza, this is Will Darcy."

Will turned, almost lazily, to look over his shoulder and halted. Then, his expression proceeded to become extremely, extremely uncomfortable. It was great.

A smirk playing across my lips, I held out my hand, "Actually, we've met."

Will's mouth was literally hanging open as he slowly reached out to shake my hand.

"Oh?" Charlie asked.

"Yeah. I believe I'm the stupid clumsy girl who couldn't take a hint?" I turned to Will, eyebrows raised. "Did I get it all?"

He just stared at me.

"That's what I thought," I said.

Then, I turned and walked back into the crowd. A smile still expressed my triumph, but I didn't really feel like I had won. Not really.


End file.
